Study Shows UK Illegal Gambling Traffic Soars; BHA Criticise Progress

The British Horseracing Authority (BHA) have called for greater action to be taken to curb the influence of the black market after citing “worrying evidence” flagged in a study by the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities (IFHA) depicting rampant illegal gambling traffic in the UK.

In their study, the IFHA analysed more than 300 betting sites, of which 74 were legal, while the other 227 were black market operators. And it seemed to indicate that illegal betting traffic is substantially higher now than pre-White Paper levels.

Extensive research unearthed

Recently, the Gambling Commission published a year’s worth of results from the Gambling Survey for Great Britain (GBSB), with the data highlighting that one in 40 respondents (0.6%) had interacted with illegal betting sites in the past four weeks. However, the IFHA unearthed some fascinating findings:

• There has been a seven-fold increase in black market usage for betting on horseracing in the past four years.
• Monthly unique visits to illegal and unlicensed betting sites climbed more than fourteen fold between 2022 and 2025 from 1.8 million visits to over 25 million visits.
• Over the same period, visits to licensed sites dropped by 34%.
• Customers spent longer on unlicensed sites. Between October 2024 and July 2026, average visit duration rose 32% from 5 minutes 38 seconds to 7 minutes 25 seconds. Page viewed per visits shot up by 34% from 5.19 to 6.98.
• Traffic intensified at 32 illegal sites accepting bets on horseracing, reaching 6.8 visits per 100 legal visits in 2026, nearly seven times the 0.97 rate found in late 2021.

BHA take swipe over inaction

Following the publication of the 2023 White Paper, operators have been forced to contend with a slew of regulatory measures. Although the Commission has issued over 3,100 cease-and-desist letters since April 2024 and were given a £26 million budget to launch an illegal gambling taskforce earlier this year, the BHA have criticised the lack of progress made.

Brant Dunshea, Chief Executive of the BHA, said: “This research presents worrying evidence that those concerns are now being realised, with an increasing number of consumers seemingly conducting their betting with illegal operators.

“These unlicensed businesses also contribute nothing to British racing or to the public finances. We recognise the Commission’s recent increase in enforcement activity, but we will share these findings with the Government and urging it to work with us to keep bettors within the regulated market as this leakage continues to grow.

“While the taskforce’s creation was welcomed as a positive development, it is over nine months since that initial announcement was made, and progress has so far been limited. We therefore look forward to working with the new Gambling Minister, Vicky Foxcroft, to inject some urgency into this process.”

Repeated warnings made

The legal market has stagnated over the past few years, and this has been highlighted by online turnover on horseracing betting slowing. But the BHA’s calls to prohibit black market betting is the latest in a long litany of warnings provided by industry experts.

Yes, the Betting and Gaming Council (BGC) have been vocal, arguing as much as £1 billion could be staked on the Premier League with illegal operators in 2027/28, up from this season’s £800 million forecast. Ladbrokes and Coral owner Entain, meanwhile, called for a blanket ban on black market sponsorships of sports teams, and the BHA will now be hoping their voice can carry weight in the debate.